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Earth Ancients

Karen Mutton: Water Realms, Technology of the Ancients

Earth Ancients

Cliff Dunning

Society & Culture, Social Sciences, Science

4.41.5K Ratings

🗓️ 5 June 2021

⏱️ 85 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Water Realms is a unique book that surveys water management and technologies in ancient societies. From the flushing toilets of ancient Crete to the qanats of Persia, aqueducts of Rome, cascading tank systems of Sri Lanka and the great baths of the Indus Valley to the eel traps of southern Australia, ancients on all continents were managing water in unique ways. Water Realms explores ancient irrigation projects, urban sanitation and forgotten technologies employed to bring fresh water to ancient settlements. In the 21st century, the pursuit of fresh water has become one of the most pressing issues of our time. We need to appreciate the ingenious methods of our ancestors in order to preserve our precious drinking water for future generations. Without adapting to climate change, modern civilization may go the way of the Mayans or Mesopotamian cultures who disintegrated when the water ran out. There are tons of illustrations in this fascinating book!

Karen Mutton is a retired ancient history teacher, author, lecturer, world traveller and mother of three. She has written five books on ancient history and finance. Water Realms is part of her “Realms” series, after Sunken Realms and the forthcoming Subterranean Realms. Residing in Australia with her husband, daughter and cat, she enjoys researching, writing, socializing with family and friends as well as travelling to foreign countries to appreciate their culture and history. She lives in Sydney, Australia.

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Transcript

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0:00.0

As we enter the month of June, summer is on our mind, and that means water.

0:08.4

Be it regional lakes, ponds, even the ocean is a place we connect with water.

0:14.2

This week we look at how the ancients use water.

0:17.9

They channeled it, collected it, and distributed it in a variety of methods that we are just beginning to understand.

0:26.3

Some of these methods are extremely sophisticated, and go back as far as 5,000 years in the past,

0:34.0

using methods we are now beginning to understand.

0:38.6

All this in the news with Bruce Fenton on Earth Ancients.

0:56.0

For Saturday, June 5th, 2021, this is Earth Ancients.

1:23.6

I'm your host, Cliff Dunning.

1:28.4

Oh, I take a deep breath and exhale, and I am enjoying this period right now.

1:39.0

I have had time to relax, rejuvenate, and prepare for the summer.

1:46.7

I have recently been visiting with relatives and my son in Northern California.

1:56.0

He's in the Redwood area, a city called Willets, California.

2:02.2

I have to say that in the last three weeks I have experienced what can only be considered insanity.

2:14.0

I should be reporting to you the details from our Egyptian trip, which was scheduled for the end of May,

2:23.0

and went into the first part of June, but I have to report I didn't make that tour.

2:32.0

Instead, I entered Looney Tunes.

2:55.3

You can't imagine how frustrating it was to get to the airport, present my passport,

3:03.2

and be told that I cannot board the plane.

3:06.8

I had no expectations of this.

3:09.6

I've been traveling for 30 years all over the world, and when the registration counter said to me,

3:19.4

you cannot get on the plane.

...

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